PC Minutes from December 13, 2013

PARENT COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

DECEMBER 13TH, 2013

Fall Festival recap:

Over $3000 dollars were raised this year at our Fall Festival. 350 children attended. The t-shirt expense took away from our gross profit, but there are still t-shirts for sale in the front office for $10 each. The vendors donated a portion, and in some cases half of their profits back to ABS. The first Fall Festival outdoors at the 7th street building was a huge success and lots of fun.

January Jam:

January 17th is January Jam. This year we will be having simultaneous events – one at the MLK building for Kindergartners through 4th graders, and the other at the 7th Street Building for the 5th through 7th grades. We will need LOTS of volunteers (popcorn poppers, dance floor, hallway and bathroom monitors, snack sellers). A volunteer is needed to be in charge of coordinating the 7th Street Jam. Those wanting to volunteer should contact Julee Nunley (julee@thenunleys.net).

Capital Campaign:

We are at 50% of our goal of $500,00 for the Capital Campaign. We had 100% board support, raising $56,000 alone from their donations. Many families have purchased one of the window grills in the upper school’s building at a $3000 commitment. 16 of the 18 windows have been purchased. The dance studio will be named after Alex Ewing, former chancellor at School of the Arts. Our parental goal of $50,000 has almost been reached. The Capital Campaign helps BOTH buildings. One example: The cafeteria will have acoustic tiles added after Winter Break to help with noise levels. A door may be added as well, to shut off the Café during lunchtime and contain noise as well.

Animals on Campus:

We have had some concerns recently about dogs on campus. Some children are allergic and others have fears of dogs. Now that there is the new setup of tents for pickup, when a dog comes up with a parent, many children get excited and stand up (they are to remain seated) and others that are seated and frightened of dogs, feel even more overwhelmed. There have also been concerns about dogs in the car line at pickup. A dog jumped out once, and although no one was harmed, he could have gotten hit by a car. Also, all animals can be unpredictable at times, which could have put children at risk.

Principal Hollis is open to suggestions and solutions to find a balance. We have not had a “no pets on campus” policy yet, but we want to keep our children safe.

Summary of EOG Results:

The state released last year’s EOG results. Last year, the state shifted to Common Core, which resulted in all subjects and all tests to be revised. The entire state of North Carolina failed. We performed at 42.7% in Forsyth County, worse than the state average. Overall, our students at ABS are 62.6% proficient, which is 20% better than the county. Principal Hollis discussed the breakdown of the performance composites, in detail and the entire results can be viewed online at http://www.ncaccountabilitymodel.org/SASPortal/mainUnchallenged.do?unchallenged=yes Principal Hollis noted that what is most important is looking at your own child’s score and seeing if he or she is at an expected level. Our school exceeded expected growth levels. This is to say that from the start of a school year, until the end of that year, our students are meeting or exceeding what they should know. MAP testing gives us more specific results within each area being tested than the EOGs do.

Gardening Committee:

Matt Mayers gave a wonderful and informative presentation on the landscape plans for our 7th street building. The area will be divided by regions of North Carolina and will be a biotopic depiction of the plants that are native to those areas. Jesse Hammond, a professional landscaper, is helping with purchasing plants at wholesale prices. After Winter break, we will be needing LOTS of volunteers to help dig holes and plant the plants he will be getting for ABS. Big thanks to Jesse, Lisa Kinnamon, and Jeff Morgan for their tireless efforts with the landscaping of ABS.

Our next Parent Council Meeting will be in February. There is no January Parent Council meeting.

Volunteer Needs Recap-

Jan. Jam-JANUARY 17th

7th street coordinator

popcorn poppers

dance floor monitors

hallway monitors

bathroom monitors

snack sellers

Gardening Help

Diggers and Planters needed for several landscape day opportunities following the Winter Break. Contact Matt Mayers for more information.